Stark County knows November

Thursday

Oct 31, 2013 at 9:11 PM

Football in November is familiar territory for the Stark County Rebels.

Mike Landis

Football in November is familiar territory for the Stark County Rebels.The Rebels have authored semifinal marches the past two seasons, and the tools and experience are there again for another lengthy postseason run."We have some pretty good expectations for these guys," said Stark County coach Jade Noard, "but we keep telling them that just because we've done it the last two years doesn't mean it's guaranteed."The 2013 postseason begins at 7 tonight as the Rebels host Flanagan-Cornell-Woodland at Gary Johnson Field in Wyoming.The Falcons are members of the Heart of Illinois Conference and enter at 6-3. F-C-W underwent an offensive transformation during the season, starting with a spread attack and shifting to a ground and pound wishbone running game."Their offensive line is their strength," said Noard of the Falcons. "They are real big up front."The F-C-W big boys try to open holes for senior feature back Kody Appel and sophomore Austin Dutko. Appel isn't big, checking in at 5-7 and 170 pounds, but is a quick and shifty runner."We have to get their offense off the field," said Noard. "We can't let them grind out first downs. That gives them momentum and keeps our offense off the field."Stark County's balanced offense — the Rebels rushed for 2,058 yards and passed for 1,583 yards this season — usually serves the Rebels well come Class 1A playoff time.Noard said while Lincoln Trail Conference foes have become accustomed to Stark County's run-pass attack, the task of slowing the Rebels can be a tall one for unfamiliar foes."Now we're playing someone that has five days to prepare for us," said Noard. "I think it can put some stress on a defense to prepare for what we do."The starting lineup for the Rebels on offense finds Ryne Daum at quarterback, Colton Senders at running back and Logan Hollis, Thorin Hicks, Brody Elliott and Jake Berchtold at wide receiver. Jake Price anchors the line at center, flanked by guards Blake Ryan and Jordan Rumbold, and tackles Joe Kelly and Tyler Dorsey.The Stark County defense features Kelly at noseguard, Hollis at defensive end and Zade Musselman at tackle. The linebackers are Jake Goodman, Sage Pearson, Senders and Daum.In the secondary it’s Joe Charvat and Hicks at the corners Colyn Dailey at strong safety and Berchtold at free safety.

Rebels by the NumbersHere are the offensive and defensive leaders for Stark County:Rushing — Colton Senders with 83 carries, 979 yards, 11.8 yards per carry and 12 touchdowns; Ryne Daum with 53 carries, 383 yards, 7.2 yards per carry and 7 touchdowns.Passing — Ryne Daum with 67 completions on 108 attempts for 1,486 yards, 23 touchdowns and 4 interceptions.Receiving — Jake Berchtold with 654 yards on 25 catches, 26.2 yards per catch and 10 touchdowns; Logan Hollis with 431 yards on 17 catches, 25.4 yards per catch and 9 touchdowns; Thorin Hicks with 294 yards on 14 catches, 21 yards per catch and 5 touchdowns.Scoring — Logan Hollis with 74 points on 12 touchdowns and one 2-point conversion, Colton Senders with 72 points on 12 touchdowns and Jake Berchtold 66 points on 11 touchdowns.Kicking — Kyle Gehrt converted 41 PAT kicks and 2 field goals for 47 points.Defense — Logan Hollis led the defense with 56 tackles, followed by Colyn Dailey and Sage Pearson with 55 stops each. Cole VanDaele had three interceptions and Joe Charvat added two picks. Brendan Mummert, Ryne Daum and Colyn Dailey recovered two fumbles each.Team Numbers — The Stark County defense allowed 15.9 points per game and the offense scored 45.2 points per game for a differential of 29.3 points per game.Playoffs — This is Stark County's 18th consecutive playoff appearance and 19th overall. The Rebels are 20-18 in the playoffs with a pair of runner-up finishes. Stark County advanced to the semis in 2A in 2011 and 1A in 2012.